The present invention relates to hygiene products, and more particularly to disposable sanitary seat covers, and methods for making and using the same.
A recent study by the University of Arizona concluded that shopping carts are among the most contaminated objects with which consumers regularly come into contact. Infants, toddlers, and small children often accompany their parents on shopping trips. Frequently, children are restrained in the child seat of a shopping cart, thereby bringing the children into contact with the contaminated surface of the shopping cart. It would be desirable to limit the child's contact with the shopping cart to reduce the likelihood of illness or disease that may result from contact with the contaminated surface of the shopping cart.
In that regard, child seat covers are known in the art. By way of example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,678,888, 6,129,417, 6,237,998, and U.S. Design Pat. No. 423,176 describe various shopping cart seat covers. Similarly, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,967,606, 6,065,655, and 6,129,418 describe cushions for shopping carts. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,855,412 and 5,829,835 describe diaper bags that convert into shopping cart seat covers. U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,641,200, 5,791,732, 5,810,437, 5,848,797, 6,036,264, 6,164,721, and 6,224,152 describe various embodiment of seats adapted to be used in or with shopping carts.
While each of the devices described in the aforementioned patents may be effective, at least initially, the devices suffer from a number of drawbacks. Each of the devices is a multi-use device. Each time the device contacts a contaminated surface, the sanitary effectiveness of the device is reduced. Ultimately, the device may become as contaminated as the shopping cart surface, rendering the device ineffective. In addition, many of the devices include structural components that make the devices large, bulky, and difficult to transport. Further, routine wear and tear causes the quality of the product to degrade over time.
Thus, it would be desirable to have a disposable sanitary seat cover that provides a barrier to the transmission of contaminants between the seat and users of the seat. In addition, because the disposable sanitary seat cover is replaced each time a new child uses the seat, it would be a further benefit to advertisers to have a removable coupon attached to the sanitary seat cover.